Baroness Amos: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for International Development (Hilary Benn) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	Last week I visited the Horn of Africa. In Kenya I saw at first hand the devastating effects that drought is having on people's lives in the arid north of the country. In Ethiopia I saw the benefits being gained from work we are supporting through a "productive safety nets" programme to protect poor people from drought and food shortages.
	Precise data on the severity of the current crisis in the region are difficult to obtain, but our analysis suggests that this could be the worst drought in the Horn of Africa for at least a decade. The UN estimates that as many as 5.4 million people are severely affected. Of these, 1.7 million are in southern Ethiopia, 1.4 million in southern Somalia, and 2.3 million in northern Kenya. Malnutrition rates are exceptionally high in these areas, affecting between one in three and one in five children. As many as half a million children are in need of emergency help.
	A swift response from governments and the international community is required to get this situation under control. So far; in the current financial year, we have committed more than £12 million to tackle this crisis, and stand ready to do more. Of this, in Kenya, DfID has already committed £5.3 million (making a total of £9.7 million since mid 2004) to humanitarian relief and I pledged a further £3 million during my visit. This will help provide much needed food, health and nutrition support, and will also enable urgent action to be taken to provide water supplies to the worst affected places.
	One of DfID's humanitarian advisers has just returned from an assessment visit to southern Somalia. I will now be looking at options for significantly increasing our current contribution of £1.5 million to ensure that a disaster is avoided. The UN issued an appeal for Somalia last month, and we were one of the first to respond.
	In Ethiopia we are major investors in the productive safety nets programme and have made additional contributions to provide help in drought affected areas. The government of Ethiopia have just issued their annual humanitarian appeal and we will be considering further funding. Ethiopia has sufficient food stocks to meet anticipated needs for the next few months. The most important thing now is to ensure that relief is taken swiftly to the worst affected areas in the south. We will continue to monitor the situation and will be providing further funding.
	As well as dealing with the current crisis, it is clear that much more can be done over the long term to reduce the vulnerability of people living in these areas so that when there are droughts and other types of shocks, they are better able to cope. It is also critically important that we press ahead quickly with the reforms of the international humanitarian system to ensure a swift and effective response when crises like this occur.

Lord Warner: My right honourable friend the Minister of State (Jane Kennedy) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	Over the course of the past six months, the Government have consulted formally and have had other extensive discussions with those directly concerned in industry, universities, the research councils, research charities and the National Health Service (NHS) about the NHS contribution to health research in England. Widespread agreement has been reached with these stakeholders on the means by which the NHS can best contribute to our aim to improve the nation's health and increase the nation's wealth as proposed in the Government's 10 year science and investment framework.
	The new national health research strategy Best Research for Best Health, published today, sets out how, working with our research partners, this aim will be achieved. The strategy is designed to place people at the centre of a system founded on quality, transparency and value for money; it recognises and responds to changes in society and the environment; and it responds to the challenges inherent in the current arrangements.
	Over the past 15 years there have been significant developments in the contribution the NHS makes to applied research and to the evidence base on which advances in health care depend. The changes proposed in Best Research for Best Health build on that experience, and will ensure that we establish the NHS as an internationally-recognised centre of research excellence. Further, they will ensure that we attract, develop and retain the best research professionals to conduct people-based research, that we commission research focused on improving health and care, that we strengthen and streamline systems for research management and governance, and that we act as sound custodians of public money for public good.
	Separate implementation plans covering each of the main components of the strategy will be published today on the department's website www.dh.gov.uk/researchstrategy. The plans will be reviewed and updated regularly during the course of the implementation process.
	Copies of the strategy document have been placed in the Library.